Cant use Naim speaker plug with Uniti Atom?

Now I thought Naim speaker plugs are a universal fitting for all Naim amps. How come I cant get them to fit my Uniti Atom. I just got a pair of ready made NACA5 cables 2nd hand as some one was selling off all their Naim stuff. I have just started to fit hem and noticed the plugs wont fit as the gap between the where the pins go on the Atom is less than on the plugs. Why would this be? Does the Atom use a different plug? Confused and annoyed right now.

There appears to be two different types and sizes for some reason, I had an Atom previously and it comes with it’s own plugs that connect straight in whereas on the Nova the cable enters at right angles, the actual plugs themselves are identical though it’s just the black plastic housing that’s different. Best solution is to dismantle the housing with a small Phillips and just carefully plug them in individually, maybe tape them up first. When you get the correct plugs you can simply pop the existing ones in to the new housing without having to resolder

Thanks I am not going mad then. Cool. I’ll have to look in the box then as they must be in there somewhere.

I found the plugs but I can’t work out how I can get the posts from the full size ones into the Atoms as its not a right angled plug its straight so the wire has to come out the back… No way they will fit with cable already attached They are truly awful design as you will need to bend the cable inside to attach to fit in the gap in the posts…

Nothing whatsoever wrong with the design, you just need to cut the wire to remove the old angled plugs & solder on the new Nova plugs.

When I changed from Atom to Nova I used the same plugs without resoldering, I just swopped the housing so you should be able to do the reverse I would have thought, they are a bit fiddly and you need to ensure the plugs stay loose and wobbly within the housing

The Atom & Nova plugs are the same
CrystalGypsy (I believe) has the legacy 90 degree angel plugs which have 19mm spacing that does not fit the Nova/Atom
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Pretty sure from memory Atom and Nova are different, Nova comes with wider spaced 90deg plugs whereas Atom is narrower with straight cable entry, I might be losing it but I don’t think so!

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As an owner of both an Atom and Nova, I can confirm that the spacing for the speaker plugs are in fact different between the two models.

OK, if you are right, no problems, I just remember (I think) seeing straight ones in the back of a Nova
Whatever, these are just basic banana plugs & speaker cables, there’s nothing complicated about it, no point in throwing toys out of the pram

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There is no way they will go in They cant due to the way the cable is soldered on to the pins. The cable
comes off the pin at a right angle. The Atom ones go in straight there is no room for the 90 degree angle the cable currently has with the pin.

Anyway I cut the ones it came with off as they are of no use to me and for now using Standard Banana plugs that don’t require soldering until I can be bothered to go to a dealer and get them put on properly.

No its in I do notice a far more balanced sound over all with surprising more bass extension but more controlled… Its smoother at the top end too. Most pleasant so far. Nicest my system has sounded But it is the most horrible cable to fit anything to and manipulate and i know I am going to be forever pushing the plugs back in to the speakers and no doubt the Atom.

NACA5 can be pretty awkward, but if you take a bit of time to get it routed properly, it tends to stay put, so it can be an advantage too. Take some time to bend it into shape, and it will stay in that shape for good. Softening it up with a hairdryer makes bending it much earier.

Will try the hairdryer trick when I get more time.

I’ve some on loan at present and the above reflects my findings too, like Chris says the stiffness can be an advantage once you take your time dressing and routing the cable

If you have NACA5 with the SA8 speaker connectors fitted, then the plugs themselves will fit fine in to the Atom, but they need to be removed from the plastic housing (cover the ends with a bit of heat shrink), they will of course be at an angle rather than straight in though. Otherwise best to cut off the pins from the SA8s and solder on the pins straight ahead from the smaller Atom speaker connectors.

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